Toll posting machine



May 16 1933. H, FOOTHORAP 1,909,148

TOLL POSTING MACHINE Filed Dec. 51, 1925 9 Sheets-Sheet l fizryAJZaz/Zargv.

May 16, 1933. H. A. FOOTHORAP TOLL POSTING MACHINE Filed Dec. 51, 1925 9 Sheets-Sheet 3 May 16, 1933. H. A. FOOTHORAP TOLL POSTING MACHINE Filed Dec. 51. 1925 9 Sheets-Sheet 4 in a y 1933. H. A. FOOTHORAP TOLL POSTING MACHINE Filed Dec. 51, 1925 9 Sheets-Sheet 5 i @L :Q

J flailyA J ZoZ/zorga y l9' 3. H. A. FOOTHORAP 1,909,148

TOLL POSTING MACHINE Filed Dec. 51, 192E 9 Sheets-Sheet 6 y 6, 1933. H. A. FOO'I 'HORAP TOLL POSTING MACHINE Fil ed Dec.

9 Sheets-Sheet '7 May 16, 1933.

H. A. FOOTHORAP TOLL POSTING MACHINE Filed Dec.

51, 1925 9 Sheets-Sheet 8 May. 16, 1933. H. A. FOOTHORAP TOLL POSTING MACHINE Filed Dec. 51, 1925 9 Sheets-Sheet 9 Patented May 16,1933

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE rrsnnn. comment, A ooaromr'rxon' or DELAWARE Tom. ros'rnm MACHINE Application filed December This invention relates to a machine for printing toll slips such as are used by telephone companies andother public utilities. The object of the. invention, gener lly stated is to produce a machine of this ar acter embodying typewriting mechanism associated. with. mechanism for supporting, feeding, ejecting and stacking the toll slips to facilitate posting at high speed.

.Su'bordinate objects' of the invention will appear as the. succeeding description is developed.

In the accompanying drawings:

Figure 1 is the front elevation of my machine with unimportant parts broken away. g

Figure 2 is a top planview thereof. a

Figure 3is a rear elevation with certain of the parts broken away.

Figure 4 is a side elevation.

Figure 5 is a horizontal section on the line 55 of Figure 1. v

Figure 6 is a vertical section on the line 66 of Figures 3 and 5.

Figure 7 is a plan view, more particularly of the carriage retracting mechanism.

Figure 7 is a detailed 7*7- of Figure 7.

Figure 8 is a detailed section on the line 8-8 of Figure 7 showing a part of the mechanism for line spacing the toll slip.

Figure 9 is. an elevation of the structure shown in plan view in Figure 7 {Figure 10 isa section through the paper table and associated parts designed more particularly to show the form ejector.

Figure 11 is an elevation of the toll slip or form release mechanism.

Figure 12 is a section on the line 12 of Figure 13;

Figure 13. is a horizontal section of one of the cam clutches forming a part of the form feeding mechanism. 1

Figure 14 is vertical section of said clutches taken on the line 14-14 of Figure 15, and

Figure lines 15-15 of Figure 14.

Referring to the reference numerals on the drawings:

section on the line.

15 is a detail section takeu on the 81, 1925. Serial 170. 78,865.

Surmounting the pedestal 1- and carried by brackets 2 extendinginwardly therefrom is a frame 3, the side members 4 and 5-of which are rigidly connectedin spaced relation by front and rear transverse bars 6 and 7.. The frame 3 in turn supports the front and rear carriage guides 8 and 9 of an Elliott-Fisher typewriter carriage 10 which is similar in construction and equipment to the carriage of the well known Elliott-Fisher machine of commerce. There are certain specific exceptionsto this general statement which will be hereafter indicated. Sufiice I it to say for the moment that the carriage 10 is equipped with the usual recording mechae nism including a series of type arms 11 and operating keys 12, by the manipulation of whichletters and numerals may be printed in the usual way. The carriage 10 is advanced by a spring drum 13 connected to .the carriage by'a tape 14 and this movement is controlled by the usual carria e feeding mechanism which includes a fee rack car ried by the rear carriage guide-and geared to the carriage through the medium of a key operated escapement mechanism not shown in the drawingssince it is fully described in United States Letters Patent No. 1,203,- 519. The numeral 15 designates the usual adjustable -margin stops the purpose of which will be understood.

At the inner sides of the frame members (see Fig. 5 are plates 16"and 17 carried by the bars 6 and 7 and connected by a trans verse bar 18 engaged by lugs 19 projecting 86 rearwardly from the curved rear end 20 of a form receptacle 21 (see Fig. 6) supported by brackets 22. Abovethe form' receptacle 21 is mounted on the frame bar 6 a flat form table 23 which projects sufiiciently in advance of the front carriage guide 8 to facilitate the placing of a'form on the table by the operator. Along the opposite side edges of the form table 23 are form ides 24 and 25 which overla and guide e side edges. .95 of the form. The right hand guide 25 terminatessomewhat in the rear of the front edge of the table to facilitate the insertion of the form. I

Adjacent to the rear end of the form table and at the line of writing is a rubber or other suitable strip which constitutes a platen 26 which backs the form or work at the printing line in an obvious manner.

Located just beyond the end of the form table is a series offeed rolls 27 mounted on a feed shaft 28 (see Fig. 6) afforded.

cross bar 34 of the frame 31.

To release the paper or form from the feed rolls when desired, a paper feed re: lease key 35 is located at the left of the papertable. This key 35 is located at the end of a release lever 36 fnlcrumed on a stud 37 (see Figs. 5 and 11). and having a suitable connection at .its rear end with an arm 38 secured to the shaft 32. A headed stud 39 preferably engages the slot in the forward portion of the lever 36 to retain and guide the same.

Two separate mechanisms are utilized to operate the paper feeding mechanism. One ofthese mechanismskis a manually operated ejector for the form, and the other isa carriage control automatic feed which upon the retraction of the carriage to begin a new line of Writing causes the feedingmechanism to advance the toll bill or other form rearwardly the distance of one-line space.

Describing first the automatic paper feed, depending from a one way clutch 40 on the feed roll shaft 28 is an arm 41 connected by a push rod 42 with the lower end of a lever 43 fulcrumed intermediately of its ends atone side of the frame 3' (see'Fig. 6). The upper end of the lever 43 has a slot and pin connection with an arm 44 of aswinging bail 45 yieldingly retained in its normal position by a spring 46 and having a cam 47 which, when engaged by aprojection 48 on the carriage 10, causes the bail to be swung sufliciently to rock the lever 43 and to swing the arm 41 for the purpose of rotating the shaft 28 and the feed rolls 27 sufliciently to feed the form one line space. The cam 47 is adjustable along the bail 45, the'set screw 47 a-being provided for that purpose, so that I the line spacing operation may be timed to occurat different points in the retraction of the carriage in-accordance with different margin requirements controlled by the left .hand margin stop 15.

The form ejector includes an ejector key 49 mounted at the front endof an ejector rack 50 mounted in a rack guide 51 secured to the plate 16. The rack 50 meshes with a pmion 52 on the feed shaft 28 and has an angular rear end 53 for the attachment of an ejector retracting spring 54 (see Fig. 10). When the operator has completed the posting, the toll slip may be ejected into a subjacent receptacle by placing a finger on the key 49 and moving the rack back against the resistance of the spring 54 until the movement is arrested by the rack guide as shown in dotted lines in Figure 13.

When the form is ejected from the form table, it will be noted that its rear edge will be guided in the substantially semi-cylindrical rear end portion of-theform receptacle. This will cause the form to be curled back so that what has been its rear edge will advance into the storage portion of the form receptacle 21 and the-form will have been reversed. That is to say, the curved end 20 of the form receptacle constitutes a form reversing guide because when the form has been deposited in the receptacle, its printed side will be the underside of the form although it was the upper side when the form was supported by the table. This handling of the form results in stacking the forms in the form receptacle in their proper numerical order-and facing in the proper direction since it is obvious that when the stack of forms is removed and reversed, the

accomplished by a one way clutch 55 similar to the clutch 40. These two clutches 40 and 55 are combined in a single structure as illustrated: in Figures 13, 14 and 15. One member 56 of these combined clutches is pinned to the shaft 28 and has oppositely extending annularfianges 57 each of which encircles a clutch disc 58. One of these discs is movable with the arm 41 of the paper feed and, the other is movable with the pinion 52 of the ejector mechanism. Each of these discs 58, as shown in Figure 15, has a peripheral recess 59 of diminishing depth and between the bottom wall of this recess and the flange 57 is a clutch ball 60. When the disc is rotated in the operative direction, the ball is wedged between the bottom of the recess and the flange toestablish a driving connection between the disc and the shaft. When the disc is moved in the reverse direction, however, the ball is permitted to seek the deep end of the recess ably electric, is mounted upon a bracket 62, and belted, as at 63, to a drivewheel 64 freely rotatable upon a suitably journaled shaft 65." The hub 66 offwheel 64 constitutes the movable member 67 of a clutch 68 including the fixed member 69 fast on the shaft 65. When the members 67 and 69 are engaged a carriage retracting pinion 70 keyed to the shaft will be rotated to drive a carriage retracting rack 71 fixed to the carriage of the machine. Member 67. is moved by a bell-crank clutch operating lever 72 fulcrumed on a bracket 73 and hav- 1 ing a stud 74: engaging a groove 75 in said When the carriage nears the end of its forward run a projection 79 on the carriage rack engages the front end of the latch lever 77 to trip said lever to a releasing position whereupon the spring 76 will operate the clutch operating lever 72 to engage said clutch members. The motor will now return the carriage. As thecarriage completes its retractile movement a projection 81 on said carriage will engage adjustable screw 82 on lever 72 and the final retractile movement of the carriage will swing the lever 72 against the resistance of the spring 76 to disengage the clutch and permit the latch lever 77 to reengage the projection 78 and 'hold the. clutch members disengaged. A carriage return lever 85 is fulcrumed upon a bracket 84 so that its lower end 85 may be engaged with the end 80 of the latch lever 77 to trip the latter at any point in the travel of the carriageto shorten the run of the latter. A stop 87 limits movement of the lever 83. The controlling switch S for the motor is mounted on the pedestal of the machine.

The numerals 88, 89, 90, 91 and 95 designate respectively difl'erent parts of a carriage lock cooperatin (not shown). The oregoing carriage return mechanism and the carriage lock form per se no part of the present invention, but are covered in my divisional application Serial No. 440,143, filed March 29, 1930, to which attention is invited for a detailed understanding thereof.

There is also included in the machine automatic tabulating or skip spacing mechanism which is. a modified form of' similar decimal spacing mechanism shown in my Patent No. 1,512,282, and forms no part of. the present invention. In this instancea with the escapement dog 96 cooperates with axseries of tri s 9.7 on the trip bar 98 supported by stan ards 99 from theusual tabulator bar 100.

The dog 96 is arranged to retard the escapement, in a manner well understood, by contact with the trips 97 and thus effect automatic skipping of the carriage first over the decimal space in the amount column of the toll slip, then over a double space to the first position in the tax column and finally to the code column all at proper intervals in printing the amount, tax and code,

The numerals 100 and 101 designate the usual tabulator bar and stops respectively, and 102 a single movable stop operated by the usual tabulator key 103 su1tably connected thereto (not shown), for instance in a manner similarto'that shown in my Patent No. 1,280,697. The stops are arranged to halt the carriage for the initial letteron the left of the places called column and in position to begin the writing of the amount. The usual indicator 106 and scale 107 on the carriage and front guide rail respectively indicate at all times the-position 'of the printing point. herein to this tabulator mechanism' nor to the tax counter 108 and its operating keys 109 and 110.

What I claim is:

1. The combination with a stationary frame and a platen mounted therein,-of a carriage movable on the frame, line spacing mechanism including feed rolls, a swinging bail along which the carriage moves, operating connections at one. side of the machine between the bail and the feed rolls,

No claim is made and means for operating the bail by movevided with a cam at the. opposite side of the machine, a travelling carriage movable on the frame, and means movable with the car- I riage to enga e the cam and swing the bail 3. In a mac me of the class described, the combination with printing mechanism, of

a subjacent work table,a bar-like platen atthe rear of the table, work feeding mechanism in the rear ofthe laten operative to pull the work 'rearwar ly. whereby work slips of shorter length than the table may be fed from the table onto and off the platen, an ejector mounted to slide along one side of the table and including a key normally located at the front of the table, and means for operating said work feeding mechanism by sliding movement of said ejector rearwardly.

'4. .In a machine of the class described, the combination with printing mechanism, of

4 a subjacent work table, a fiat platen at one end thereof, work feeding mechanism operative to pull a work sheet from the'table over the platen, and work guides mounted at opposite edges of the table one of which is longer than the other to facilitate locating one edge of the work sheet thereagainst.

In testimony whereof I have affixed my signature.

HARRY A FOOTHORAP. 

